March Madness Magic: Takeaways from Iowa basketball’s tournament run

As usual, the clock struck midnight on Cinderella, and the party ended. The Iowa Hawkeyes fought valiantly, but fell to the Illinois Fighting Illini by a score of 71-59 in the Elite 8. Iowa hung with the Illini for most of the game, but saw things slip away late.

This tournament for Iowa won’t be remembered for bowing out to Illinois in the Elite 8, but rather the magical run they put together to captivate the entire sports world as a No. 9 seed. Iowa got by Clemson in the first round, stunned the entire bracket by knocking off No. 1 Florida in the second round, and sent rival Nebraska home in the Sweet 16.

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This core of Iowa basketball players will be remembered for the run they put together. Bennett Stirtz captivated fans with his offensive play. Tavion Banks and Cam Manyawu showed what true effort in the paint looks like. Alvaro Folgueiras has become an Iowa legend. Cooper Koch, Tate Sage, and Kael Combs showed what it is like to embrace big moments.

With the dust still settling, Iowa will look back at what happened in this tournament while also turning the page to what’s next and how they can build on it.

Size caught up with Iowa, is a portal need

Mar 28, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) grabs a rebound against Iowa Hawkeyes forward Cooper Koch (8) in the second half during an Elite Eight game of the South Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Often undersized, Iowa was able to mitigate this disadvantage in the tournament against Florida and Nebraska. Unfortunately, this caught up to Iowa against Illinois and proved to be the difference. The Illini dominated the boards, outrebounding Illinois 38-21, with 16 of those being offensive rebounds. They also outscored Iowa 40-12 in the paint. This proved to be the difference.

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Ben McCollum confirmed this postgame, with his comments that Iowa needs to add some more size, with the roster lacking a true,…

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Publish date : 2026-03-29 16:55:00

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